Since Hillary Clinton’s campaign started, President Obama and the administration have always been on her side, even if Obama’s official endorsement of Clinton as the “most qualified candidate to run for president” wasn’t made until earlier this summer. Now, with barely a week to go before the election, it looks like Obama and his colleagues may be jumping ship from the SS Clinton.

On Monday, Press Secretary Josh Earnest and other leading officials are standing by FBI Director James Comey’s decision to reopen an investigation on the former Secretary of State. The White House even labeled Comey as a man of “integrity” and “principle” as the Clinton campaign and other Democrats began a verbal onslaught against one of our nation’s top security agencies.

Earnest says says President Obama does not believe that the Republican law enforcement official is looking to “intentionally influence the outcome” of the presidential election. This counteracts the rhetoric of Hillary Clinton herself and Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid, who claim that he is.

“The president’s assessment of his integrity and his character has not changed,” Earnest said at his daily briefing. “The president doesn’t believe he’s secretly strategizing to benefit one candidate or one political party. These are tough questions, so it’s a good thing that he’s a man of integrity and character… Comey is in a tough spot.”

“I guess it’s fair to say that since we didn’t know about it in advance that we were surprised,” Earnest told one reporter regarding Obama’s take on the matter. “Particularly when you consider the kind of longstanding tradition that’s been observed by investigations and prosecutors in our democracy for a long time. ”

The Obama spokesman says the president will continue to believe in Comey’s ability to do his job correctly, regardless of the criticism he’s receiving from Clinton and other Democrats. “The president thinks very highly of Director Comey,” Earnest assured reporters.